5000.  There is in the Department of Consumer Affairs the California
Board of Accountancy, which consists of 11 members, six of whom
shall be licensees, and five of whom shall be public members who
shall not be licentiates of the board or registered by the board.
The board has the powers and duties conferred by this chapter.
   The Governor shall appoint three of the public members, and the
six licensee members as provided in this section.  The Senate Rules
Committee and the Speaker of the Assembly shall each appoint a public
member.  In appointing the six licensee members, the Governor shall
appoint members representing a cross section of the accounting
profession with at least two members representing a small public
accounting firm.  For the purposes of this chapter, a small public
accounting firm shall be defined as a professional firm that employs
a total of no more than four  licensees as partners, owners, or
full-time employees in the practice of public accountancy within the
State of California.
   This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2006, and as of
January 1, 2007, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
becomes effective on or before January 1, 2007, deletes or extends
the dates on which this section becomes inoperative and is repealed.
The repeal of this section renders the board subject to the review
required by Division 1.2 (commencing with Section 473).  However, the
review of the board shall be limited to only those issues identified
by the Joint Legislative Sunset Review Committee and the board
pursuant to implementation of new licensing requirements.



5001.  Each member of the board, except the public members, shall be
actively engaged in the practice of public accountancy and shall
have been so engaged for a period of not less than five years
preceding the date of his appointment.  Each member shall be a
citizen of the United States and a resident of this state for at
least five years next preceding his appointment, and shall be of good
character.  Within 30 days after their appointment, the members of
the board shall take and subscribe to the oath of office as
prescribed by the Government Code and shall file the same with the
Secretary of State.



5002.  Each member shall be appointed for a term of four years and
shall hold office until the appointment and qualification of his
successor or until one year shall have elapsed since the expiration
of the term for which he was appointed, whichever first occurs.
   Vacancies occurring shall be filled by appointment for the
unexpired term of a person licensed in the same capacity as the
person being replaced.  No person shall serve more than two terms
consecutively.  The Governor shall remove from the board any member,
except a public member, whose permit to practice has become void,
revoked or suspended.  The Governor may, after hearing, remove any
member of the board for neglect of duty or other just cause.




5003.  The officers of the board are a president, vice president and
a secretary-treasurer.



5004.  The president, vice president, and secretary-treasurer shall
be elected by the board for a term of one year from among its members
at the time of the annual meeting.  The newly elected president,
vice president, and secretary-treasurer shall assume the duties of
their respective offices at the conclusion of the annual meeting at
which they were elected.



5006.  The officers of the board shall continue in office until
their successors are elected and qualify.



5007.  The president shall preside at all meetings of the board, and
in the event of his absence or inability to act, the vice president
shall preside.  Other duties of the president, vice president, and
the duties of the secretary-treasurer, shall be such as the board may
prescribe.


5008.  The board shall, from time to time, but not less than twice
each year, prepare and distribute to all licensees, a report of the
activities of the board, including amendments to this chapter and
regulations adopted by the board, and may likewise distribute reports
of other matters of interest to the public and to practitioners.




5009.  The board shall compile and maintain, or may have compiled
and maintained on its behalf, a register of licensees that contains
information that the board determines is necessary for the purposes
for which the board was established.  The board shall make the
register available to any licensee and to the public.



5010.  The board may adopt, repeal, or amend such regulations as may
be reasonably necessary and expedient for the orderly conduct of its
affairs and for the administration of this chapter.  The regulations
shall be adopted in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code.



5011.  The board shall designate the location of its principal
office and may establish branch offices in other locations.



5012.  The board shall have a seal.



5013.  The board shall keep records of all proceedings and actions
by and before the board and before its committees.  In any proceeding
in court, civil or criminal, copies of those records certified as
correct by the executive officer of the board under seal of the board
shall be admissible in evidence and shall be prima facie evidence of
the correctness of the contents thereof.



5015.  The board may employ clerks, examiners and, except as
provided by Section 159.5, other assistants in the performance of its
duties, and pay salaries and necessary expenses.



5015.6.  The board may appoint a person exempt from civil service
who shall be designated as an executive officer and who shall
exercise the powers and perform the duties delegated by the board and
vested in him or her by this chapter.
   This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2006, and, as of
January 1, 2007, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which
becomes effective on or before January 1, 2007, deletes or extends
the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.



5016.  A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum for the
transaction of any business at any meeting of the board for which a
notice of at least seven days is given by the president or executive
officer.  Notice of meetings may be waived in writing either before
or after the meeting by unanimous consent of all members.  The board
shall meet at the call of the president and executive officer, but
not less than twice each year.  Any two members of the board may
request the executive officer to call a special meeting, and the
executive officer, upon receiving that notice, shall call a meeting
pursuant to the procedure prescribed herein.



5017.  All meetings of the board shall be open and public, except
that the board may hold executive sessions to deliberate on the
decision to be reached upon the evidence introduced in a proceeding
conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section
11500), Part 1, Division 3, Title 2, of the Government Code.
   The members of the board may hold executive sessions to prepare,
approve, grade, or administer examinations and shall have
jurisdiction or vote over these functions of preparing, approving,
grading, or administering examinations in executive session as
provided for in Section 11126 of the Government Code.



5018.  The board may by regulation, prescribe, amend, or repeal
rules of professional conduct appropriate to the establishment and
maintenance of a high standard of integrity and dignity in the
profession.  In addition to the requirements contained in Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 11370) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of
the Government Code, a copy of the rules shall be mailed to every
holder of a license under this chapter at least 30 days prior to a
date named for a public hearing held for the purpose of receiving and
considering objections to any of the proposed provisions.  Every
licensee of the California Board of Accountancy in this state shall
be governed and controlled by the rules and standards adopted by the
board.



5019.  The rules of professional conduct adopted by the board shall
be printed as a part of the application blanks for both certificates
and registration and every applicant for either a certificate or
registration shall subscribe thereto when making an application.



5020.  The board may, for the purpose of obtaining technical
expertise, appoint an administrative committee of not more than 13
licensees to perform any of the following duties, and the committee
may be vested with the powers of the board for those purposes:
   (a) To receive and investigate complaints and to conduct
investigations or hearings, with or without the filing of any
complaint, and to obtain information and evidence relating to any
matter involving the conduct of licensees, as directed by the board
or as directed by the executive officer pursuant to a delegation of
authority by the board.
   (b) To receive and investigate complaints and to conduct
investigations or hearings, with or without the filing of any
complaint, and to obtain information and evidence relating to any
matter involving any violation or alleged violation of this chapter
by licensees, as directed by the board or as directed by the
executive officer pursuant to a delegation of authority by the board.

   (c) In exercising the duties prescribed in this section, the
committee shall act only in an advisory capacity, shall have no
authority to initiate any disciplinary action against a licensee, and
shall only be authorized to report its findings from any
investigation or hearing conducted pursuant to this section to the
board, or upon direction of the board, to the executive officer.



5021.  The members of the administrative committee shall hold office
for one year.



5022.  The committee shall make recommendations and forward its
report to the board for action on any matter on which it is
authorized to act.  Any applicant for registration as a certified
public accountant who is aggrieved by any action taken by the
committee with respect to his or her qualifications may appeal to the
board in accordance with rules or regulations prescribed by the
board.  The board on the appeal may give an oral or written
examination as an aid in determining whether the applicant is
qualified under the terms of this chapter.



5023.  The board may establish an advisory committee of its own
certified public accountant members or other certified public
accountants of the state in good standing, to perform either of the
following advisory duties:
   (a) To examine all applicants for the license of certified public
accountant.
   (b) To recommend to the board applicants for the certified public
accountant license who fulfill the requirements of this chapter.



5024.  The board may create and appoint other advisory committees
consisting of public accountants or certified public accountants of
this state in good standing and who need not be members of the board
for the purpose of making recommendations on matters as may be
specified by the board.



5025.1.  (a) The board may contract with and employ certified public
accountants and public accountants as consultants and experts to
assist in the investigation and prosecution of judicial and
administrative matters.
   (b) Contracts made pursuant to this section are not subject to
Article 4 (commencing with Section 19130) of Chapter 5 of Part 2 of
Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code, except that the board
shall apply the standards set forth in Section 19130 in awarding
personal service contracts under this section.
   (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the board may
contract with these consultants and experts on a sole source basis.
   (d) If a person, not a regular employee of the board, is hired or
under contract to provide expertise to the board in the evaluation of
the conduct of a licensee, and that person is named as a defendant
in a civil action for defamation, tortious interference with
prospective business advantage, or other civil causes of action
directly resulting from opinions rendered, statements made, or
testimony given to the board, its committees, staff, legal counsel,
or other representatives, or in any proceeding instituted by the
board or to which the board is a party, the board shall provide for
representation required to defend that person in that civil action
and shall indemnify that person for any judgment rendered against him
or her.  This right of defense and indemnification shall be the same
as, and no greater than, the right provided to a public employee
pursuant to Section 825 of the Government Code.  Nothing herein shall
be construed as expanding or limiting any immunity from liability
otherwise provided by law.
   (e) On or before June 1 of each year, the board shall report to
the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of each house of the
Legislature the terms of the contract or contracts entered into each
fiscal year pursuant to this section.  The report shall include the
cost, services, terms and duration provided under each contract, the
identity of the firms or individuals awarded any contract, and data
demonstrating the cost effectiveness of the board's sole-source
contracting in the investigation and prosecution of the board's
enforcement programs.